EVERETT — The Everett Events Center’s grand ballroom is booked almost every Saturday night until summer.
The Everett Silvertips are attracting an average of 5,000 fans each hockey game.
And downtown restaurants and bars have seen big jumps in business whenever something’s happening at the arena.
Two months after it opened, the events center appears to be on track to make a profit in its first 15 months, said Kim Bedier, general manager of the arena for Global Spectrum, the center’s management company. The center is using a 15-month budget year because it did not open until Sept. 27.
Events center officials are still tallying up revenues before presenting a financial report to the Everett Public Facilities District board later this month.
Everett City Councilman Mark Olson, who has followed the events center closely as a council liaison to the district and was recently appointed to the board, said: "Overall, I’m really pleased with the events center. It’s a source of great community pride. And there’s a huge economic benefit of having so many people come into our community for these shows."
Joel Starr said the events center has been "absolutely stellar" for his restaurant and bar, The Flying Pig. Business is up about 25 percent on event nights, he said.
"In fact, it’s kind of created a problem," Starr said. "We’ve been turning away 30 to 40 people for each hockey game."
Starr has been giving out coupons for free appetizers and soft drinks to customers who would miss the beginning of a hockey game or other event if they had to wait for a table.
A few blocks away, The Vintage Cafe also has seen a 25 percent spike in business because of the arena, co-owner Karen Staniford said.
"It’s been absolutely fabulous," she said. "I wish there could be an event every night."
The Silvertips have had two 8,300-seat sellouts for their first 11 games, Bedier said.
"It’s better than we expected," she said. "There are a lot of new hockey fans in Everett."
Disney on Ice did so well last month that it will be back next year, Bedier said. Two of the eight shows nearly sold out, she said. Feld Entertainment, which produces Disney On Ice, requests that exact ticket sales not be released, Bedier said.
A representative with Feld Entertainment did not return phone calls.
The strong Disney on Ice ticket sales the following week at Key Arena in Seattle will reassure promoters that they don’t have to worry about hurting ticket sales in Seattle if they also book events in Everett, she said.
"That helps us bring in other shows," Bedier said.
Another arena event last month, the Class 3A and 4A high school girls’ volleyball tournaments, "did very well," said Mike Colrese, executive director of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, which puts on the tournament. Attendance was 8,164.
"It is a phenomenal facility," Colrese said of the arena.
Upcoming events include the Harlem Globetrotters, Dragon Tales Live!, and the first round of the 28th annual world championship ice speedway series. The Bullriders Challenge, which features 30 professional bull riders, is scheduled for Friday and Saturday.
The challenge has been held twice a year for eight years at the 3,000-seat Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe, and it has sold out its last few shows, said Gerry Andal, one of the promoters of the event. That’s why Andal and his partners are adding the two Everett shows to the Monroe events in January and April, he said.
"It’s not only more seating, it’s better seating," Andal said. "It’s right on top of the action."
On Thursday, 20 dump trucks will unload 6,000-square feet of dirt onto the arena floor, he said.
One type of event the arena hasn’t hosted is concerts. Bedier predicted that the success of the arena’s early events will help sell the venue for music.
"It’s all part of proving our market," she said. "Early on, we’ve been able to showcase the versatility of the arena."
Another problem events center officials have had is persuading a sponsor to buy naming rights for the facility. The price at comparable arenas is $3 million over 10 years, said Harry Howell, president of Cleveland-based Sports Facilities Marketing Group, which markets the venue.
The events center’s conference center and community ice rink also are doing well, the managers of those facilities said.
The conference center’s 11,500-square-foot ballroom is booked on Saturday nights through June, except for January, said Jill Smith, manager of the center. Most of those events will be fund-raisers, she added.
The ice rink attracts about 1,000 people a week to its open skating sessions, said Kyle Wintermute, manager of the rink. That’s up from about 700 a week in early November.
More than 100 people attended the three ice-skating classes and the youth hockey clinic over the past several weeks, Wintermute said.
"It’s been exceeding our expectations," he said of the rink’s popularity.
Reporter David Olson: 425-339-3452 or dolson@heraldnet.com
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